Neutral Colors
by Once Upon a Dark Swan
Summary: Henry never knew that taking art with Storybrooke High's newest teacher, Ms. Swan, would become such a big deal. How was he supposed to predict that she would develop a crush on his mother (and English teacher) who couldn't stand art teachers? Swan Queen endgame.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

 **I saw a post on tumblr (mine is darkswan-evilqueen if you want to check it out) that said something along the lines of "forget teacher/student AU I want a teacher/teacher AU" and I felt inspired. This first chapter is more of an introduction than a chapter really. It's not the length most of the chapters will be that's for sure. I think it's a good start though. So here's my second fic (my first is Silver Bullets which you guys should totally check out). I hope you guys enjoy it! Please leave reviews, favorite, and follow if you enjoy this fic.**

 **I own nothing.**

* * *

"Do you have everything you need for the day?" Regina asked her son. It was his first day of high school and Regina couldn't help but be worried. He had assured her for the past two weeks that he would be fine though. He gave her a small smile and a nod in response to her question.

"Did you pick up your schedule?" She asked him as she started placing syllabi and other papers on desks that her students would take home and have their parents or guardians sign.

"Yeah. I got it this morning when you were still getting that box of new books out of the car."

"What classes do you have this year?" Henry sat his backpack down on the English teacher's desk and rummaged through it for a moment before pulling out a piece of paper and looking at it for a moment before he started to read it out.

"I have first hour with Mr. Gold for biology, second hour is advanced United States history with Ms. Lucas, third I'll go to gym with Coach David, then I go to algebra one with Kathryn, I'll have lunch, and then music with Ms. Blanchard, advanced English with you, and I finish the day in Ms. Swan's class." Henry told her. Regina looked at him in confusion.

"Ms. Swan?" He nodded.

"Someone said she's a new teacher here." He told her.

"Well what does she teach?" Regina asked.

"Art." He said causing her to frown.

"Why did you take art? You could've taken creative writing with Mr. Booth. Or hell, geography with Mr. Jones. Art won't get you anywhere in life though." His mother said. Henry slipped his schedule back into his bag and zipped it up before tossing it over his shoulder.

"I have to have an art credit to graduate no matter what, Mom. I figured I would take art now and get it over with and then if I like it I can take another art class next year. The only other art credits I can take is musical composition and I don't want to do that. We know how music and I get along. Remember when you forced me to take piano lessons? That grand piano is still just sitting around and getting dust on it." He said. Regina thought about it for a moment before nodding. His reasoning was fairly sound. Regina couldn't blame him for not wanting to take musical composition. Some old woman who didn't speak clearly and was always grumpy was teaching it. Anyway Henry was right; he had never liked music and he was only taking a regular music class because he wanted a class with Ms. Blanchard. It was a shame that regular music classes didn't count for the required art credit.

Regina understood where her son was coming from, but she still wasn't happy. Art teachers were the bane of her existence. Not to mention, Storybrooke was a small town and it didn't get new teachers very often. She glanced at the clock that read 7:58 am.

"Okay well I'll see you this afternoon then, Henry. You need to get to class. You don't ever want to be late to Mr. Gold's class." She told him while remembering all of the students she had seen crying outside of his classroom since she had started working at Storybrooke High School. Henry nodded and quickly took off out of the classroom and down the hall. Apparently, he had heard his fair share of rumors about the bitter old science teacher.

* * *

Regina had successfully made it to lunch without strangling any of her students. Their usage of commas, or lack thereof, was almost barbaric. Lunch break was something good in all of her days though. She got to sit around with Kathryn, Mary Margaret, Belle, and Ruby while they shared the gossip they heard from their students and talked about anything else they found interesting. Ruby hadn't turned up in the teacher's lounge for lunch yet though.

"So has anyone met Miss Swan yet?" Regina asked casually. Belle shook her head but the other two women nodded.

"Her classroom is right next to mine. She seems really nice... A little edgy... But nice. And the students seem to adore her already." Mary Margaret told them. Kathryn scoffed at her words.

"She seems like a heathen if you ask me. Every time I see her she looks like she's up to something she shouldn't be. I wouldn't let her within two hundred feet of the students if I had a choice. She's probably going to let them all do whatever they want." Kathryn said.

"Well that's unfortunate seeing as how Henry signed up for her class." Regina stated dryly. Mary Margaret was about to speak up when Ruby walked through the door of the teacher's lounge.

"Hey Ruby, where have you been?" Belle asked.

"I'm eating lunch with Emma but I needed caffeine so I came to get a drink." She said, gesturing to the soda machine in front of her.

"We always eat lunch together though, Ruby." Mary Margaret said sadly.

"Well yeah but Emma is new and she wanted to stay in her room and work on some stuff so I offered to stay in there with her." Regina rolled her eyes.

"She's an art teacher. She probably does drugs on the weekend and gives every student an A. Art teachers aren't even real teachers if you ask me and I can't even believe that Henry wanted to take her class." Kathryn nodded at her best friend's words while Mary Margaret looked at them disapprovingly.

"First of all, I'm pretty sure she doesn't do any drugs on the weekend. Secondly, she is definitely not going to be just giving kids an A. I looked at her syllabus and it looks really intense. Those kids are going to have to work for an A if they want one in that class. Maybe you should go talk to her instead of just making assumptions. She's really cool." Ruby told the two other teachers angrily before leaving the lounge to head back to Ms. Swan's classroom. Kathryn rolled her eyes and took a sip of her drink.

"So did anyone watch Big Brother last night?"

* * *

Regina's day had significantly improved throughout the afternoon. Her students that she had in classes after lunch had a much better understanding of comma use than the other students had. Henry had told her about his day up to that point and Regina was pleased to discover that everything had gone well. His teachers were great and he thought he would enjoy all of his classes. The only one after English was art which he didn't didn't seem to be dreading, but Regina certainly was. She tried to brush off the annoyed feeling she had for last period but it seemed to bother her all throughout the class. Unfortunately, enough questions couldn't be asked about the syllabus to get her mind off of things.

 _Why did he have to take art of all things?_ Regina thought to herself.

She had waited for over fifteen minutes longer than usual for Henry to arrive to her classroom so that they could head home and he still wasn't there. She had hoped she wouldn't have to go track him down but it seemed that the odds were not in her favor. She grit her teeth in frustration and headed down the hall and across the school. Her heels clicked loudly along the tile surface as she made her way towards Ms. Swan's room. Her motherly instinct told her that Henry had probably decided to hang out in the wretched new art teacher's room. As she rounded the corner to head down the hall she passed Ms. Lucas who smirked at her in the way that screamed "Are you in for a surprise or what?" She looked at the room number above the door and then walked into the new teacher's room.

The room was well lit but also dim enough to keep it from being considered bright and different art supplies were neatly sitting on shelves at the back of the room. Indie and alternative music played softly throughout the room and Regina was instantly enveloped in the calming atmosphere. Henry was sitting at a table with a blonde who Regina assumed was Ms. Swan and they were quietly discussing something as the two drew on sketch paper with special pencils. Regina cleared her throat loudly and they turned around to look at her.

Ms. Swan was definitely not what Regina had expected. The English teaches had been expected someone with tons of tattoos, multiple piercings, and messy hair that appeared as if it hadn't been washed lately. Part of her was expecting bloodshot eyes and the smell of weed too. It was not what she got though. Ms. Swan was actually a woman with blonde, and very clean, hair, no visible piercings, and no visible tattoos. She had green eyes that instantly captured Regina's attention and she tried not to admit to herself that her son's art teacher was actually very attractive.

"Hey mom." Henry said nonchalantly before turning back to his drawing. Ms. Swan gave a small smile and stood up as Regina walked towards them. She reached out her hand politely and Regina shook it after getting over her shock at the manners of the blonde.

"I'm Ms. Swan, but feel free to call me Emma. You must be Mrs. Mills?" She asked. Regina glared at her.

"It's Ms. Mills. And you can call me Ms. Mills." She growled out.

"Oh, I um. I'm really sorry..." Emma said, her voice lowering in embarrassment and a little bit of guilt.

"Relax, Ms. Swan. You can call her Regina. She acts like she'll care but she won't." Henry said knowingly. Regina knew he was right but she couldn't help but roll her eyes at the hope in Emma's green ones.

"Yes fine. I apologize for Henry staying in her and bothering you. It's about time we head home." Regina said, changing the subject. Henry groaned as he started to put away supplies.

"No don't worry about it. He didn't bother me at all. He's really good at art too. I mean, he definitely has some skills that need some touching up on but it's nothing we can't handle, right kid?" Emma asked fondly and received an emphatic nod from the boy in question.

"Well, I'm sure he's looking forward to it. We need to be leaving though." Regina said. "Goodbye Ms. Swan."

The pair left the art room together with Henry talking excitedly about art and Emma sighed as she fell back into a chair and pulled out her phone. She tapped the phone icon beside the contact name and waited for a moment before the person she had called picked up.

 _"What's up?"_

"You're right, Ruby. I like her already."

* * *

When they arrived home, Henry went up to his room and Regina pulled out her phone. She flopped back onto her couch as she listened to the ringing before a familiar voice rang out over the phone.

 _"Hello?"_

"Kathryn, we have a problem."


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:**

 **Thanks for the positive response. I hope to see even more from this chapter. Reviews, favorites, follows... I appreciate all of it. They're the best form of motivation.**

 **I own nothing.**

* * *

Kathryn took her sunglasses off of her face and put them on top of her head as she entered Regina's classroom. The English teacher had gotten to work earlier than usual to set everything up so that she would have extra time to go have a small discussion with Miss Swan. Kathryn had helped her come up with a solid game plan on the phone the previous night.

"You ready to head on over there and stick it to the Swan?" Kathryn asked with a smirk. Regina rolled her eyes as she sat the a book on the last desk.

"I wouldn't call it sticking it to her, Kathryn. I'm just going over to lay down some basic rules and make sure she understands me. I don't want to let her attractiveness cloud my judgement." Regina said. She had convinced herself last night while talking to the math teacher that she needed to make it well known that she knew what art teachers typically got up to and she wouldn't be having any of it while her son was in Miss Swan's class.

"Atta girl Regina. Now get on over there. You've got just enough time." Kathryn said while guiding her out of the classroom and into the empty hall. Regina gave a small nod and headed down the hall and across the school to where the art teacher's room was.

* * *

Emma knew. The moment heard the staccato noise coming down the hall she just knew that Regina was coming to pay her a visit. Emma had taken a liking to the brunette immediately and had informed Ruby that she wanted so badly to ask the English teacher out. Obviously that would be a difficult situation though, considering that Regina didn't seem to care too much for her. Ruby insisted that Regina wasn't that bad but it was difficult for Emma to imagine ever having a hands with a woman like Regina Mills.

"Miss Swan, may I have a word with you?" Emma glanced up at Regina, who was stood in the entrance of her classroom with both hands on her hips. She phrased it like a question but Emma knew that it was more of a demand and she gave a nod in response before turning her attention back to the painting that she was working on at the moment. Regina sauntered over to her and sat down in the chair at Emma's desk, quietly observing the blonde woman painting for a moment before she spoke.

"I need to lay down some ground rules with you. They are very basic rules bury ours an art teacher so I thought I'd be very clear about them." Emma was about to protest but Regina continued. "My son, Henry, is taking your class, as you know. I do not want him in your class but I also do not want to force him out of it. So I decided to come down here and make some things very clear between us. No drinking, drugs, tobacco... Nothing. My son has a bright future and I refuse to watch him throw it down the drain. I know that art is a less demanding course than say, mathematics or English, but I would like it if you would keep your recreational activities away from my son." Regina finished and Emma sat down her paintbrush, took a deep breath, and turned to look the brunette in the eyes. She normally would have melted at the sight of brown eyes like that but Regina had taken things too far with her.

"Are you done?" Emma asked. Regina thought for a moment before giving a short nod. "Let me start by saying that I refuse to have my profession insulted like that again. I get told all the time how art is a useless major and those who do major in it are useless members of society. Don't insult it again, please. I hate reading but I'm not sitting here telling you that English is simple and unimportant. Second, I'm not a pothead. Don't paint me out to be something based on your horrible stereotypes. I can't do drugs or drink because of my medication anyway."

"So you pop pills?" Regina questioned. She knew that the question was out of line but people didn't stand up to her like Emma was doing and it made her feel something strange. The only way she knew how to respond was defensively.

"Dammit Miss Mills. I am not a drug addict. I do not smoke weed. I do not drink myself into oblivion. I do not pop pills, and I do not give my students the idea that they should. And not that it's any of your business but I can't do drugs of any kind because I'm on antidepressants. Now, if you could please leave my classroom then I would greatly appreciate it." Emma snapped angrily. Regina looked away in shame. She hadn't meant to offend Emma or say something so hurtful to the blonde. She was just concerned about her son and she didn't know how she was feeling at the moment. She quietly got up and left the room to head back to her classroom to begin teaching the first novel of the year to her students.

* * *

"Oh my god, Regina."

"I know."

"I had no idea."

"I feel horrible."

"That makes two of us."

Kathryn and Regina stared back at each other silently. It appeared, especially after Henry returning to her classroom with a wide smile on his face, that the two women had highly underestimated Emma Swan. Regina always stayed later than usual after school on Tuesdays so that she could grade assignments and Henry had entered her classroom when the bell rang with a large grin and a plea to go hang out with Miss Swan until it was time to leave. Since she didn't have any assignments to grade yet, what with it being the first week of school and all, Regina and Kathryn ended up sitting in the classroom and talking about how the conversation with Emma had gone that morning.

"I need to apologize to her." Regina said suddenly, breaking the silent tension of the room.

"Then apologize to her." Kathryn said. The brunette shook her head.

"It isn't that simple, Kathryn. I overstepped a very large boundary and completely disrespected her. Henry would not stop talking about how much he likes Miss Swan this morning on our way here. Yet that wasn't enough for me to realize that she may not be that bad." Regina told her sadly. The blonde thought for a moment before a smirk played at her lips. Regina eyed her cautiously. "What?"

"You could always invite her over for dinner." She said casually.

"What?!" Regina exclaimed. "There is no way in hell."

"Regina..." Kathryn sighed. "I know that you don't want to give her a chance because she's an art teacher, but Henry likes her. Henry is the most important person in your life and he likes her. Yesterday you called me because you needed the guidance of a friend, and if I'm going to quote you here. You said, 'I feel like I'm already developing some pathetic schoolgirl crush on her." I didn't support you like I should have at first Regina but I am now. Let your little crush play out. Apologize, invite her over, get to know her. Just give her a chance okay? Nobody will think less of you for dating an art teacher." Kathryn said, rolling her eyes at the last part of her statement. Regina seemed to consider it for a moment.

"Okay, I will consider it. I am definitely going to apologize though. Let me think it over and I will call you later tonight with details of how my next encounter with Miss Swan goes." Regina said.

* * *

Henry noticed the clicking of his mother's heels before Emma did and he began cleaning up the area he had been drawing in. Emma however, was so immersed in her painting that it didn't even register with her when the English teacher entered her classroom. She moved the brush gently along the canvas as she added a hint of blue to her work. She looked up to see where Henry had gone and flinched away in surprise when she finally saw Regina standing in front of her.

"Miss Mills, hi. I think Henry is cleaning up. He should be just a moment." She said awkwardly.

"That's alright, dear. I don't mind waiting, and please, call me Regina. I actually wanted to apologize to you." Emma's eyebrows shot upwards and Regina tried not to roll her eyes. "The way I acted this morning was completely uncalled for and I'm deeply sorry. I hadn't intended to put you in a position where you felt like you had to share that information with me and I want you to know that I won't be sharing it with anyone else." Emma nodded in understanding but didn't say anything in response. Regina tried to think about how to proceed. She looked around and saw that Henry was almost done putting the supplies away. "Would you like to come to dinner on Friday?" Emma's head snapped up so quickly that she thought she might have given herself whiplash.

"What?" She asked, shocked at what Regina had just said. The brunette cleared her throat as Henry walked into the room.

"Would you like to come over for dinner the Friday? As a sort of, welcome to Storybrooke. I believe we started off on the wrong foot and I would like a second chance if you would give me one." She said sincerely. Emma gave a small smile.

"I would like that."

"Okay, well here," Regina said as she took a pen and a sticky note from Henry's backpack to write her number on. "Is my phone number. I'll be in touch." She finished smiling. Henry and Regina shared a quick goodbye with Emma before walking out and the blonde couldn't help but smile to herself as she looked at the post it note in her hand again.

* * *

"So you invited her over?" Kathryn asked, her voice full of excitement. Regina had stopped by Kathryn's classroom to update the blonde before she and Henry headed home.

"Yes, I did. She'll be coming over on Friday. I just hope I don't screw it up this time." Regina scoffed. The blonde rolled her eyes.

"You won't screw it up. And anyway, I think she has a thing for you."

"What?!" Regina screeched. "She does not have a thing for me."

"I'm pretty sure she does... And I think you have a thing for her too."

"Oh my god. Kathryn. No. Do not try and play match maker. We have talked about this before." Regina said. Kathryn smirked at her mischievously and slid off of the desk she had been sitting on top of.

"I'm aware. But I'm not the only one who thinks you two have the hots for each other. Ruby does too. And Zelena hasn't talked to Emma yet but she thinks you two would look great together." Regina groaned and put her head in her hands before looking back up at the math teacher.

"I cannot believe you three. I shouldn't be surprised that two of my closest friends recruited my sister to help them push me together with another teacher." Kathryn laughed and picked her purse up off the ground.

"It was bound to happen eventually. I'll see you tomorrow, Regina!" She said as she walked out of e classroom, leaving Regina sitting at the desk and thinking about a certain blonde art teacher.


End file.
